M. Wiffen

Metrolinx, the owner of a construction project, moved to post the agreed basic and notice holdback amounts into court to vacate several subtrade liens and have the actions against it dismissed.

The subtrades consented to the posting but argued Metrolinx should also be required to post security for prejudgment interest and pay their costs.

The Master held that holdback is a retention obligation, not a payment obligation, and therefore does not attract prejudgment interest under the Courts of Justice Act.

However, the Master awarded partial indemnity costs to the subtrades, finding that Metrolinx unnecessarily lengthened the proceedings by aggressively defending the entirety of the subtrade claims instead of posting the holdback early in the litigation.

The plaintiffs brought a motion arising from refusals on discovery concerning requests for handwriting specimens.

The action alleged that a life insurance policy conversion application contained a forged signature and that the forgery was prepared by or on behalf of a corporate principal.

The court held that obtaining original signature specimens from the alleged individual involved was relevant to the pleaded forgery allegation and ordered the corporate defendant to produce up to 30 original signature samples for examination by the plaintiffs’ expert.

However, the request for signature specimens from another employee was refused because no pleaded allegation connected that individual to the alleged forgery.

Given the mixed success on the refusals, costs were ordered in the cause.